


5 Dates Gone Awry and the One that Worked

by DifferentDances



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-02
Updated: 2013-12-02
Packaged: 2018-01-03 05:57:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1066793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DifferentDances/pseuds/DifferentDances
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on this prompt: http://strek-id-kink.livejournal.com/1695.html?thread=817567#t817567 </p><p>"Suppose this is some AU in which the augments are integrated into the society. Khan is one of Jim's crew/friends and he's been trying to court his captain for the longest time.</p><p>The thing is, Khan's courting method is kind of outdated. He is 3 centuries behind. So Khan would try to court Jim in his old-fashioned way, and Jim just doesn't get it The rest of the crews thought this is hilarious so they didn't tell Jim (Bones tried to give him hints but Jim still doesn't get it)</p><p>When will Jim finally realize Khan is courting him? How would he react?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	5 Dates Gone Awry and the One that Worked

I'm not bothering with backstory on this one - this is just pure fluff with a twinge of angst.

I don't know how 'old fashioned' I can make Khan, really, but I can make him a 21st century man....ish.

~~~~~

1.

Khan allowed a small, confident smirk to grace his lips as he approached the captain - Jim, as it were, since they were both off-duty and Jim insisted on a delightful dismissal of formalities in their free time. Jim was standing by a table where Chekov and Sulu sat debating some nonsense or other.

The plan was simple; Jim was highly deserving of proper courtship procedures. And while Khan admitted he was a little rusty, given that prior to being frozen he was solely focused on the eradication of all lesser beings (in retrospect, a rather conceited idea), he was fairly certain he had a solid grasp on the rituals and courtesies that would lead Jim to his side and his bed.

Jim noticed his approach. "Hey, Khan," he greeted cheerfully.

Khan felt his smirk relax into a soft smile. "Hello, Jim. I was wondering if you'd be interested in grabbing a cup of coffee with me?"

"Sure, sounds great!" Khan inwardly applauded his success in his first attempt to shift his relationship with his captain from a purely professional to an extremely personal one. Then Jim turned to Chekov and Sulu. "Hey guys, want some?"

"Sure, I could go for a pick-me-up," Sulu said with a stretch. 

Chekov shook his head. "No thanks, Keptin, I don't need cafvwiene."

Khan accepted the third wheel's company with some bemusement, and thought perhaps that had been too subtle for Jim.

 

2.

Khan's next attempt utilized the time-honored tradition of demanding time and attention under the guise of offering aid. "Jim, would you like some assistance tonight with filing reports to Starfleet? Today's events seem to require quite a bit more data than usual." Khan added the nonchalant suggestion of,"I have a free shift and would be pleased to help you all night if necessary."

Jim waved him off. "Thanks, Khan, but Spock's way ahead of us both - I just have a couple things to sign off on and I'm good to go."

Khan decidedly did not pout. He didn't.

 

3.

Khan decided to try again with a more straightforward approach. "Jim, I've managed to acquire several vids of cinematic pieces popular back in my time from Starfleet's historical archives. I was wondering if you'd be interested in joining me this evening to watch a select few?"

Jim's eyes lit up. "Oh wow, that actually sounds like it could be fun! I know I've got a bit of a soft spot for the classics. Wanna come over to my quarters during Delta shift?" Jim smirked mischievously.

Khan mentally patted himself on the back on a job well done.

Hours later, Khan found himself in the midst of a Godzilla marathon, squished between Bones and Spock on the floor while Jim sat beside Chekov and Uhura on the sofa. Apparently, Uhura had an interest in seeing the progress of portrayal of a unified theme throughout decades of human history. Chekov had never seen an old Earth film, something Jim had declared a 'travesty for youths everywhere.' Spock had little to say after his objective deconstruction of the special effects had resulted in Jim and McCoy telling him to pipe down.

While not a complete wash - Khan did learn that as a child Jim had gleefully melted his stepfather's prized antique PVC Godzilla figurine in the sun - the evening moved him no closer to his goal, a fact, he noted sourly, that seemed to be punctuated by the fact that he had been relegated to the floor.

4.

Khan took advantage of the close quarters as he and Jim stood side by side in one of the jeffries tubes during a quiet shift. "Jim," Khan murmured in a low, sultry tone, his voice slinking into the still air. "I have an itch that needs scratching."

Jim blinked at him with adorable confusion, and Khan gave a seductive, meaningful glance down at their crotches.

Khan found himself in MedBay, Jim having beat a hasty retreat, with McCoy grumbling,"Jeez, not you too. Bad enough I have to clean up after Jim's excursions..."

 

5.

Shore leave on this particular Federation planet would undoubtedly prove successful, Khan determined. Jim was likely to drink and therefore loosen up (moreso than his already casual attitude), and generally approached shore leave as a chance to release sexual desires before returning to the propriety of the Enterprise. So, Jim would be ripe and fully attuned to the chance for mutual sexual pleasure. Khan could barely keep the smile of glee off his face.

He found Jim in a bar, several tall drinks empty on the counter beside him. Perfect.

Less perfect: the tall man invading Jim's personal space and making Jim's face go flushed.

More perfect: this provided Khan the chance to play the hero for his inebriated object d'adoration.

Khan approached, all controlled strength and deadliness, and said coolly,"James, is this man bothering you?" He eyed the stranger menacingly.

Jim barely glanced at Khan. "Oh yeah, I'm totally hot and bothered." Jim fluttered his eyelashes at the man and reached out to pull the man closer.

Stung, Khan retreated, wondering whether Jim kept bringing people between them on purpose or not, and unsure whether he preferred the idea of Jim being heartlessly cruel or Jim being far more stupid than Khan had thought.

1.

It was a quiet M-class planet, the expedition proving uneventful and relaxing. Shore leave was granted to crew members to enjoy the natural wonders of the planet. 

Khan found himself sitting on a hill covered with golden yellow grass, watching the unfamiliar stars above him wink into sight as the rotation of the planet dimmed the light of its sun. He could vaguely hear other crew members moving about in the distance, quiet and subdued.

He heard the rustling of the grass as he was approached. Jim sat down next to him. "Hey," he said in that heartbreakingly casual manner of his.

Khan said nothing.

The past month had been awkward between them, and Jim fidgeted beside him. "So, uh, I know life's been crazy lately, but what's up?"

Khan gave him a sidelong look. "Why do you ask?"

Jim scratched his head awkwardly (Khan had to scold himself that Jim was NOT adorable that way). "Well, you've been kind of...withdrawn lately. Bones thinks you might be having delayed culture shock, y'know, integrating into a society 300 years older than your own."

"There is some merit to that theory," Khan said dryly, turning his gaze back to the darkening sky. "Even now, the sky is so foreign as to be unidentifiable without first referencing the Enterprise's databases."

Jim glanced at the sky. "Yeah, I know what you mean. But it never gets old."

Khan made a vague noise of assent. 

Then Jim flopped on his back, head tucked behind his head. Khan gave him a bemused glance, and turn returned his attention to the sky.

As the last of the daylight faded, yielding an inky blackness dotted with shimmering lights, Jim broke the companionable silence. "I used to do this in Iowa," he murmured softly. "And once I had a sort of date stargazing. There was this girl in my high school -Guinivere- waaaaay out of my league." He chuckled. "She caught me stargazing on the outskirts of town one night; her boyfriend had just become an ex since he was getting along with her best friend a little too well. We sat, watching the sky, just like this.

"She didn't say anything, but she might as well have been crying her little heart out -she looked so miserable and lost."

Khan felt Jim level a steady gaze at him.

"I didn't know her well at all, and I could've been anybody, really, so long as she wasn't alone. Helped that she knew I thought she was smoking hot," Jim added ruefully. "Nothing like an ego boost to soothe over a broken heart."

"There is truth in that idea as well, though few are lucky enough to encounter such." Khan admitted quietly.

"Yeah..." Jim trailed off into a thoughtful silence for a few moments before speaking again. "I heard later from her friends that had I made a move after that night, I would've had her. We could've been something. Not because she was on the rebound, but because I let her sit there with me and I didn't push."

Khan began to suspect there was something precious and unsaid slipping through Jim's words, but he clamped down harshly on that hope. Jim had made it clear, had rebuffed his several attempts to make them something more.

And they sat in silence once again, less comfortable than before and tense with unknowing.

Finally, Jim blurted in a small voice,"I don't know what I'm doing, but I miss you. And McCoy said it was my fault and Uhura did some digging in the archives and said you'd been trying to 'ask me out', whatever that means, and Spock just said to talk to you already because moping was illogical. I miss spending time with you and I miss your voice and I miss the way you make me feel like a modern neanderthal when I do something stupid."

Khan turned slowly to look at him. Jim's eyes were liquid with feeling, his cheeks flushed, his chest heaving for air. There was a tension in him, as though he expected - rejection.

And Khan realized that Jim thought he was Guinevere, and Khan was Jim, and this was their hill on the outskirts of town, where someone could be had under the stars just for the asking. Khan surged forward with a snap of his muscles, straddling Jim's body and cradling Jim's face with his long fingers. "Jim, what I get, I keep," he warned breathlessly.

"Yeah, I figured," Jim replied with a slowly burgeoning smile, his brilliant, stupid Jim.


End file.
